Those Famous Five Words

** Dear Readers, like in most of my stories, there is little sex. I write about relationships and how the involved parties react to adverse situations. I have always taking your comments seriously and I hope that it is apparent with my stories. I have reused a character from another story of mine. She is not a major character but a supporting character. I am also not an expert on legal matters so if some of the procedural issues are a bit inaccurate, please forgive me.

Once again many thanks to BlankRandi1958, not only is she an excellent author and editor but she always offers tremendous support.

This is a two-part story. I will upload the second part tomorrow. I hope you enjoy and thank you for reading **

Sharon Williams was very nervous. It was time to have the talk with her husband Jamie. She had started the process almost three months before, and never felt it would get to this. It was only the last month when she became very melancholy that Jamie happened to have noticed and was always inquiring about her spirits. Jamie was concerned, but Sharon wasn’t saying anything.

“Honey, I’m fine. It’s not something that I can put my finger on, but when I do, you’ll be the first to know.”

“Maybe you should your physician?” Jamie countered.

“I wouldn’t know what to tell her. I promise you that I will work this out and when I discover what is bothering me, I’ll share with you and we can decide whether I should see Joan or someone else.”

“Okay, honey, I just feel so helpless.”

Sharon gave her husband a kiss on the cheek, a hug and walked away. As she did, he heard her say out loud to herself, “I don’t deserve him.”

Sharon knew exactly what the issue was, she was just really scared of what might happen. She loved her husband with every ounce of her body. He was her world. That is why this was all so difficult. The only consolation to Sharon was that she believed that this entire issue was Jamie’s fault. It had been almost a year ago to the day that she found Jamie sleeping in their den with his laptop open. It was late at night. She had fallen asleep at around 11:00 PM and remembered Jamie shouting that he’d be up in a minute. At 1:00 AM, Sharon woke and didn’t see Jamie in their bed. She didn’t want to yell because the kids were sleeping, so she donned her robe and went to search for her husband. She found him, out cold sleeping on his chair in front of his laptop. Sharon was going to close the laptop and wake him. Her eyes drifted towards the screen and she found herself mesmerized. Jamie was reading porn. It wasn’t just porn; it was a story about a cheating wife.”

“You’re so much bigger than my husband. You really know what you are doing.”

“You should just leave that old good for nothing and move in with me.”

“You know I can’t. I have kids.”

“I’ll take your kids, too, as long as I get your pussy and mouth every night.”

Sharon found a pencil and a small piece of paper. She wrote down the URL. She took the paper with her and left the room. She made a tiny drop of noise, hoping to stir Jamie but not completely wake him. She didn’t want Jamie to know that she was there. She placed the paper in her night table drawer and tried to go back to sleep. A few minutes later with her back facing away from the door, she heard Jamie quietly enter the room, undress and slip into bed. He was hoping that he didn’t wake her.

*****

Jamie was in real estate management. After graduating college, he started to work, first as a real estate broker and then switched into management. After three years of working, he took the chance and started his own business. He knew he needed an office manager. The recruiting company sent him two kinds of managers; older experienced woman or recent college graduates. He couldn’t afford the experienced managers, so he focused on the younger ones. He figured they could learn together. Sharon Harris was a recent college graduate. She seemed very capable. Jamie had invited her for a second interview and then told her, “Ms. Harris, I’m sorry to say but you didn’t get the job.”

Sharon looked dejected. “Mr. Williams, why didn’t you just let the recruiter know, why did you call and make me come back here? As long as I’m here, can you explain to me, why I didn’t get the job?”

“Ms. Harris, may I call you Sharon?”

Sharon looked annoyed but said “Sure, go ahead.”

“Thank you, Sharon; can I explain it to you tonight over dinner?”

Sharon was not getting it. “Why would I want to go out to dinner with you when you just rejected me for a position?”

Jamie’s answer surprised Sharon. “The answer to your question is in your question.”

“I’m sorry, I’m not following.”

Jamie just smiled at Sharon when Sharon finally blurted out “Oh you are a dirty little rascal. You think that you can ask me out after you turned me down for a job?”

“Sharon, you are more than qualified for this job, however, I do not want to be accused or arrested at some later date for sexual harassment. There is no way I can ever ask you out if I hire you. I may be hurting my business by not hiring you, for some potential personal happiness.”

“I’ll admit; this is a first. I don’t think that I have ever been asked out like that. How did you know I’m not married or have a boyfriend? ”

“I didn’t, I was hoping you’d be available. I know I couldn’t hire you because I couldn’t concentrate on work if you were always around me, whether we are together or not.”

Sharon blushed, gave Jamie her address and asked, “What time?”

“7:00 PM. We’ll do dinner and dancing, so bring your dancing shoes.”

Sharon got up. “Thank you for your time Mr. Williams. If you know of other leads, please pass them on to me.”

“It’s Jamie, and if my plan works out, we will be married in a few months and starting our family, so don’t expect any leads from me.”

As she walked out, Jamie didn’t see the shocked look on Sharon’s face. In fact, that is exactly what happened. It was on their third date that Sharon mentioned her roommates were away and asked Jamie to come up for a bit. Jamie left in the morning and from that time on, they were inseparable. They were married in eight months and one year after they wed, Dillon was born. Two years later, it was Ethan and two years after that, Fallon. The little princess completed the family. Sharon did manage to get a job, but two months before the wedding, she quit. Jamie’s business was thriving, so money was never an issue. When Fallon started first grade, Sharon took a bookkeeping course and stared to work. She worked as a bookkeeper for a large retailer, and had been working for them since. Now, with Fallon a senior in high school and Dillon in his last year at University, Sharon was looking forward to that empty nest so she could find more alone time with her husband. This was all around the time of discovering her husband’s porn fetish. She later discovered it wasn’t porn: he had a fetish for reading about cheating wives.

The following day, she left mid-day, complained she was under the weather. When she got home she went the URL that Jamie was on and perused the material. There were romance stories, incest stories, fetishes, and others. The category that intrigued Sharon the most was the cheating wife’s category. It intrigued her for a number of reasons; firstly, because that is what Jamie read. After that night, she occasionally snuck out of their bedroom after Jamie had fallen asleep and checked his history in his laptop. It was always a story about a wife cheating. She wondered if Jamie suspected her. She had no idea why he would; she didn’t cheat. She was a good wife and gave him no reason to be concerned. Yes, he always wanted sex, sometime when she wasn’t in the mood, but usually they did it. Yes, there were times when she actually turned him down and there were times when she initiated. As she read more and more stories, she realized that Jamie had a fetish, but there were four different types of stories. There was the type when the couple had an open marriage or that the husband encouraged the wife to sleep with a friend or stranger. That definitely wasn’t them, but did Jamie want that to be them? She didn’t think so and she didn’t want that, or maybe she did.

The next kind was where the wife on her own slipped once. Those stories turned her on, but then the husband would never know, so that obviously wasn’t what Jamie wanted, although it did get her thinking. The last two were what most of the members referred to as the BTB or RAAC stories. Those stories actually had the wife cheating and the husband eventually discovered her infidelity. Those stories drew out the most emotions out of her. Some had sex, others did not. It was the breaking up and divorce process that was emotional, or sometime it was the reconciliation process that affected her. The reconciliation was sometimes before divorce or sometimes after divorce, and that were also very emotional.

What Sharon could never figure out was the wives who openly without discussing with their husband, announcing that they were going out to get fucked. It was always the same: a good happy conservative marriage. Maybe the wife had issues, well, she did, but her husband wasn’t aware. Then, out of the blue, her announcement: “I am going out tonight with a man I met, I will be back in the morning and I will still be your loving wife.” The husband always tried to stop her and always failed. He always divorced her and she was actually shocked.

What kind of idiots are these women, she wondered? Where do they get their entitlement? If an affair happens for no good or bad reason, it’s one thing, but to flaunt it? Sharon knew that if she would ever get the urge, that wouldn’t be her. She learned through all these stories that the worst thing a woman can do to a man was turn him into an unwilling cuck. She learned that if she ever had a thing, it would have to be one of the first two types. Either keep it a secret from Jamie (type 2) or get his permission (type 1). She knew that once a divorce or separation process begins (types 3 and 4) it was out of her control. She definitely did not want to lose the comfort and stability of her life. She also realized that if she did try to keep it a secret, and she wanted to do it again, would she be caught? Probably. That would move type 2 (one-time secret) to a 4 (BTB), and if she was lucky, with a lot of unnecessary pain, a type 3 (RAAC).

All these thoughts went through her head for nine months while reading all the stories, then it happened. One day at work, a salesman for one of their vendors came by and enquired about payment. She usually discussed payments with the accounts receivable personnel of the vendor, sometime the salesperson themselves. She had known Steve for a while and spoken to him many times on the phone. He was a salesman for one of their largest vendors. The discussions were sometimes harmless flirtations, and they actually had never seen each other. Makayla, the office administrator, called her in the back office and told her that a Steve Carter was there and wanted to know if she was available. Sharon came out and finally met Steve face to face in the lobby.

“It’s about time I see a face behind the voice.” Steve said as he reached out his hand.

“Hello, Steve, nice to meet you in person.” Sharon answered, and shook his hand.

“I don’t think there are any outstanding invoices, are there?”

“Not that I’m aware of.” Steve answered. “I’m usually here about once a week, and after speaking to you for the past two years I figured it would be rude of me not to say hello in person.”

“Well, tell me the next time you are planning on coming by and maybe I will have more time for you. Right now, I’m behind on a few projects. It was great to meet you.”

Sharon turned and left. On the one hand she felt that she was being rude, just to cut out like that. Yes, it was true that she had a lot of projects, but she had to get away quickly because she felt like she was staring too much. Steve was gorgeous. He had to be around her age, maybe a bit younger, with a full head of light-brown hair. He was maybe 6’1″, and built. She started to compare him to Jamie, who was 5’10”, and that was on a good day. Jamie did stay thin, but wasn’t built like Steve. That all happened around three months previously.

*****

A few days had elapsed and Sharon received a call. It was Steve.

“Hi, I am coming by tomorrow, are you free for lunch?”

Sharon rarely left for lunch. She usually ate at her desk with something she brought from home. Sometimes, she and the ladies in accounting went out, but that was usually scheduled. She wasn’t sure why, but she said, “Sure, why not.”

Over the next two months she met Steve on a regular basis for lunch. He knew she was married, and started off easy. Steve, for his part, enjoyed being in the company of a beautiful woman. He was divorced with two kids, a bit younger than Fallon. He said that he screwed up. He cheated. It was a onetime slip. Maybe if he had told Alex (his wife), they might have had a chance. She found out. The woman bragged about it to her friend who happened to work with Alex. Alex found out about two weeks after the incident. Steve begged her to stay in the marriage, but Alex was incensed. He knew it.

“So why are you trying to get into my pants?” Sharon asked Steve. “Do you want that to happen to me? I thought you were a decent guy?”

“No, Sharon, if we do it, you must ask your husband for a hall pass. Ask him or tell him, but no secrets.”

Sharon was well versed in the knowledge that she attained from internet web sites.

“No, Steven, I can never tell him. I could ask. I’m not sure how he is going to take it.”

“So then you are interested?”

“I would say curious. I need something to recharge the old batteries. Everything is so routine with Jamie, but I need to respect him.”

After that conversation, Jamie had told Sharon that he had a two-day conference. He hardly every travelled for work. There were some conventions of realtors and he usually went to those. It was usually two or three times a year, and they were brief.

Sharon had agreed one time to meet Steve for dinner. It was the night that Jamie flew out. She told Fallon that she was going out with friends. Sharon was home three hours later. After that evening and for the past month, Sharon did not meet Steve. They talked quite a bit on the phone. Always at work. Steve was really pressuring Sharon to have that talk with Jamie.

*****

“Honey, we have to talk”.

Jamie was sitting in the living room. He just stared at Sharon. He was petrified. Those fives words are not what a spouse wants to hear. He knew something was bothering Sharon; he had asked her a number of times. She always played it down. He just stared at his wife.

Sharon lost her nerve. She saw the look of her husband, her loving husband’s face. This was the man she has cherished for 23 years, and the words did not come out. She started to speak, opened her mouth but no sound came out.

Finally, Jamie couldn’t take it, and in a very subdued tone said, “About what?” He wasn’t making it easier for her.

“It’s a…. It’s about me,” Sharon answered. She didn’t say “it’s about us,” and that relieved Jamie. He was convinced that she was going to ask for a divorce or separation. He was attributing her depression to that.

“What about you?”

“I need to recharge my batteries.” Sharon had that line down. Jamie had no idea, or made her believe that he had no idea, what that meant.

“I need some sexual stimulation.”

“Oh, thank heavens, I’d love to help; what do you need me to do?” a very relieved and relaxed Jamie answered.

“I need you to allow me a hall pass.”

That wasn’t what Jamie was expecting. He knew damn well what a hall pass was, reading enough about cheating wives. It took him a few seconds to get over his shock. He could have yelled or screamed at her. He didn’t.

“Why?”

“Because I need to recharge my batteries.”

Jamie was trying to get composed.

“Do I get a Hall Pass? What if you like it? What if I like it and do it again? How do you think our marriage will survive, or is that not important to you?” he said with a bit of anger in his tone.

Sharon was not thinking that Jamie would ask for a hall pass. This is not what she and Steve discussed. This was not going as planned.

“No, you don’t get one. I only wanted a one-time hall pass. I know that if I allow you to sleep with someone, she will be much younger, with a tighter ass, without droopy breasts, you’ll want to do it again and again and my fragile ego couldn’t handle that. It will destroy our marriage.”

“Oh, and you sleeping with a harder, longer and thicker dick, from a guy who can get it up multiple times in one night won’t?”

Sharon did not prepare herself well for this conversation. She was losing.

“Never mind. Sorry I brought it up.”

But Jamie didn’t let it go and the moment of truth arrived.

“Have you already met my competition, have you already done it with him and are just asking for my permission in hindsight to do it again?”

“No, I didn’t do anything yet.”

Jamie understood her answer.

“Who is the SOB. Do I know him?”

“No, you don’t.” Sharon was not very good at lying. She wasn’t sure if she should say anything about Steve yet. She was trying to keep it generic, but she wasn’t doing a good job.

“I can’t believe what I just heard. You fucking slut. You are having an affair and asking for my permission. I have had enough of this. I will never be a cuck for you. I’m getting out of here. Don’t wait up for me. Not sure when or if I will be home.”

“Jamie, don’t go. I didn’t do anything. I was asking.” Jamie was out the door. Sharon wasn’t even sure if he heard her. She just broke down and cried. She had a hunch that she was on her way to a BTB, and in her case, she hadn’t slept with anyone.

*****

Sharon didn’t leave the living room. Fallon came down, saw her mother crying and asked, “What’s wrong, Mom, and did I hear Dad leave?”

“Fallon, we just had a little disagreement and I upset your father. It will be okay.”

“Wow! That’s not like Dad to walk out without finding a resolution. You must have really pissed him off.”

“Apparently I did. I will let him cool off and then I’ll apologize. Let me just sit here alone for a few minutes and figure out how to do that.”

Fallon left to return to her room. Sharon went to make herself a glass of tea and returned to the living room.

Jamie didn’t go to his car. He walked. He didn’t know where he was going, he just walked. He was trying to think about what he did wrong. How did his marriage come to this? He replayed the conversation. On the one hand, Sharon claimed that she didn’t do anything yet. On the other hand, she was asking for permission. It wasn’t like they had a discussion about this. They never even had sex games about imagining a third or fourth partner. He read a lot on the internet and he knew how these things worked out. They were never happy endings. Why didn’t she discuss with him? Make it less personal. She could have asked his opinion on other couples.

Jamie had been reading for years about this. At first it actually turned him on a bit, imagining his wife losing all her inhibitions and having the most amazing orgasm. As he read more, he realized that it never worked out well. His favorite stories were about the wives that get thrown out on their ass, or sometimes if there was a compelling reason for the reconciliation. He actually cried when reading a few. His favorite was about a guy whose wife cheated on him, they divorced and the wife married the predator. The husband left town and came back four years later, only to discover the wife never wanted to get divorced or marry the predator.

The worst for him were the willing cucks. He had no respect for those guys. Marriage wasn’t about sex, it was about love. There is sex in marriage, but as an expression of love. Marriage is also about trust and respect. At the moment, he felt disrespected and he didn’t trust her.

Jamie found himself walking for two hours. He had no idea where he was. He got his bearings straight and headed home. He was hopeful that Sharon would be in bed asleep. There was something else that bothered Jamie, but he couldn’t put his finger on it. At midnight, he saw his house. The outside light was on. As he got closer, he noticed the living room lights were still on. He opened the front door and saw Sharon sitting in the same position with two boxes of used Kleenex all over the coffee table.

“Jamie, I’m so sorry. I don’t think I said what I wanted, properly. It was meant as discussion, not an announcement. Let’s not discuss this anymore, and when you want to, we will.”

Jamie just stared at Sharon. She was not backing down. “Good night Sharon.” He went upstairs to their bedroom. Sharon remained in the living room for another 20 minutes before going up, to find her husband, out cold.

*****

Jamie was awake at 5:30, showered and dressed. Sharon started to wake and said, “Good morning.”

Jamie just ignored her and headed out to work. Jamie had a lot of time to think. He knew what was bothering him. He believed, or wanted to believe, that there hadn’t been any infidelity yet, but she said that she already met him. Where could she have met him? She didn’t go out alone. She didn’t have girls’ nights out. Was it at work? Did she meet him over the net? What kind of a relationship did she already have? He needed advice. He thought about talking to Nathan, his attorney.

Nathan, was a corporate attorney and recommended that Jamie meet with Tanya, another attorney at their firm who specialized in family law. “Just one thing, Jamie.” Nathan had said, “whatever you and Tanya cook up, please don’t be hasty and rush into anything. I know Sharon and I know that she is devoted to you. If you like, you can always run it by me.”

“Thanks, Nate, I appreciate it. I’ll keep you posted.”

There were some action items that Jamie had after meeting Tanya. He needed to find out who Sharon had met and any information about him, and he need to hire someone who could learn more about his wife’s lover. Tanya had worked with an agency and she often used Philip and Roxanne (Phil and Roxy) Daniels. She liked using them, because as a couple they always strategized who would play whatever role was needed to get the information. Jamie made an appointment to meet Phil and Roxy.

In the meantime, Sharon called Steve at work. She filled him in. She asked that he please not call her anymore, business or pleasure. Have someone else call for business. “I guess I did this the wrong way. I’m not sure where my husband’s head is at. We didn’t speak this morning when he left,” she said.

Steve tried to protest, but Sharon reminded him that she was to get Jamie’s permission. That was the agreement. She would not cheat on him by going behind his back. Somehow, the relationship that Sharon had already established with Steve was not considered going behind his back. Sharon also considered sex with another man, with her husband’s permission, something other than cheating. Maybe cheating in a traditional marriage, but not cheating on her husband.

Jamie arrived at the office of Phil and Roxanne Daniels at 2:30. He repeated the entire story. Roxy spoke first.

“You know; she may not have done anything yet?”

“Are you taking my wife’s side? She already admitted that she knew the guy; that means that she had discussed with him the idea of them having sex, which is way too intimate for a loving wife to discuss with someone without her husband’s permission.”

“Yes, Jamie, I agree with you, and no, I’m not taking her side. I’m just pointing out that there are different levels on cheating, and each couple needs to work out for themselves what is and isn’t acceptable. There is also a line that one crosses. It may be penetration, it may be oral sex, it may be kissing and fondling, or in your case it may even be discussing the possibility.”

“Jamie, you need to tell us what you want and what you’d like from us,” Phil continued. “If all you are concerned with is whether your wife had sexual conversations with a gentleman, it may just easier for her to tell that to you, and if that is enough for you to terminate your marriage, then you don’t need to pay us. I would suggest that you record the conversation. Some free legal advice: if she wants to fight you on the divorce you may be required to go to counselling. If, however, you think that there may have been more than just a conversation, and your wife is only admitting to that, then you can hire us. It would be a lot cheaper for you if you give us the gentleman’s name and occupation, or some information about him. Roxy will follow your wife and I will follow the man. We work together, and that allows us to be more successful than most investigators.”

“What are your fees?”

Jamie was shocked at how expensive they were. Still, Tanya said that they were the best.

“Okay, let me have a chat with my wife; let’s see what she admits to and what information she provides, and then I will get back to you.”

“I would play it differently,” Roxy said. “I know this kind of woman. Do not interrogate her. Let her know that she shocked you. Let her know that the likelihood is that you won’t agree but ask her how this all came about. Get her to open up to you. And Jamie, this will be the hardest part, let her understand that you are trying to understand her needs. You are upset that she didn’t speak to you first, before she went out looking for a possible partner, ‘to recharge her batteries’. Try and draw as much information out of her as you can.”

They told Jamie where he could buy the right kind of recorder. Jamie shook hands with both of them and asked what he owed for that day.

“Today’s meeting is $250. However, if you do hire us in the future, we will credit you that amount.” Jamie paid them and left.

*****

It was 4:30 when Jamie left the Daniels office, and he decided he’d go home early. Fallon was home from school. Sharon usually got in around 5:30.

“Hi, Dad. Wow, this is a nice surprise. What are you doing home early?”

“I figured I’d surprise your mother and take her out for dinner tonight.”

“Oh good, does that mean, you forgave her?”

“Forgave her for what?”

“Dad, don’t treat me like a child. I will be in college next year. You left Mom crying hysterically last night. She told me that she upset you and wanted to apologize.”

“Fallon, we both love you very much, and whatever issues your mother and I have, are of no concern of yours. I don’t know what you were told, but I don’t care to discuss my personal business with you or your brothers.”

Fallon was a bit taken aback by her father’s tone. She figured she better drop it.

“Okay, Dad. Enjoy your dinner. I’ll just make myself a tuna sandwich tonight. Mom had asked me to defrost a chicken from the freezer, but I guess that is too much for just little old me.”

She ran up to her father, gave him a kiss on the cheek and then said. “I’m heading over to Judy’s to do our homework. I should be back by 6:30. Will you still be here?”

“I hope not.”

“Okay, see you later.”

A few minutes after Fallon left, Sharon came in. Jamie was upstairs getting dressed.

“Jamie, are you home? I saw your car outside.”

“Yes, I’m upstairs getting dressed. Come on up.”

“I have to get dinner started, give me a few minutes.”

“No, you don’t. Come on up.”

Sharon was very nervous as she went to their bedroom. She saw Jamie dressing.

“Where are you going?” she asked very nervously.

“We, honey, we are going out for dinner. I made reservations. We have to leave in 20 minutes; can you be ready?”

“What am I missing? Are you the same man that barked at me last night and ignored me this morning? What, did you meet a special lady today in less than 24 hours and felt what’s good for the goose… I told you that wasn’t part of the package.”

“Sharon, we’ll talk about everything. I need, no sorry, I’d like to hear about it all from the beginning. You came out of nowhere last night with your announcement. ”

Dinner was lovely, Sharon started to speak, but Jamie said, “No honey, not here.” After dinner they drove a park and sat down on a bench under a street light. Jamie turned on his recorder without Sharon noticing.

“Sharon, please tell me everything from the beginning. When did you start having feelings that you were missing something; when did you meet your ‘friend,’ or did it happen in the reverse order?”

Sharon explained everything. How she found the web site, after catching Jamie, how she had followed up on him a bit, but that was only for a month or two, and by then was doing her own reading and creating her own seduction.

“The stories that excited me the most, where the wife had a secret relationship, but only once. I remember reading about a wife who was caught naked coming out of the shower by her teenage neighbor, and one thing led to another. I remember a few stories about a wife going on a business trip and having a one-night stand. There was never a follow-up to those stories. The stories that had follow-up always had a very sad ending, or in some cases a happy reconciliation, where many readers hated the husband. Honey, I would never want to put you or me in that situation. What about you?”

“Funny, the only stories that I really enjoyed were the reconciliation stories where it was justified. I hated the willing cucks. I really hated those entitled wives who announced that she was going out to get fucked, but in the morning, she would be a loving wife again. Sharon, that is what it sounded like to me.”

“No, Jamie, no. I asked you. I didn’t announce it. Maybe I didn’t do a good job.”

“But you haven’t answered my question,” he said. When did you think that you could be one of those wives, that you needed stimulation outside of our marriage, with or without permission?”

“Well, I sort of thought, or maybe subconsciously thought, that is what you wanted.”

“Maybe once I had some crazy fantasy, but no, it’s not even a fantasy. Now it’s a nightmare. So are you saying you went looking for prince charming?”

“No. Steve, that’s his name, works for a vendor of ours and we had a long-standing business relationship. Up until three months ago, I never even knew what he looked like.”

“So how did you have a long relationship with him?”

Sharon explained they had known each other about two years, but only on the phone. Then he introduced himself, then he asked her to lunch and one thing led to another.

“What does that mean: one thing led to another?”

“I told him that I thought you wanted this and that in time I might even want this. Steve was very excited about it. He’s divorced and does date, but never dated a married woman. He says guys really get an ego boost when they nail another man’s woman.”

“Well, that’s not a smart thing to say to the husband. Does Steve work for a client or a vendor?”

“Vendor.”

“Which one?”

“Jamie, I don’t feel comfortable in telling you that. We didn’t do anything, and I don’t want you to do something that you may regret.”

“Suppose I would agree to a one-timer? Don’t you think I have the right to check him out or meet him?”

Sharon was shocked by what Jamie just said.

“Yes, er… but I thought… didn’t you just say that you hated the willing cucks.”

Now Jamie was caught off guard.

“I did, but maybe I could be convinced if I met him and I knew it was a one-timer.”

Sharon could not believe what she heard. Did she really want this? Was she just testing Jamie?

“I need… I need to ask Steve.”

Jamie did not like that answer. “Does Steve know my name? Does he know what I do?” he spat out in anger. “Sharon, I am your husband. You need to start with me, not with your lover.”

Sharon picked up on the change in tone

“I called him today and told him to drop the whole thing. Let’s forget it.”

“How did he react?”

“He wasn’t happy. He tried to convince me to continue with our plans, anyway, but Jamie honey, I said that I would never do that. I told me never to call me again. That he should get someone else from the company to call for business reasons.”

“Okay, so if as you said, that it’s over, then tell me his last name, please.” Jamie said with a tone of annoyance.

“What are you planning on doing?”

“I promise you nothing physical or professional. You say this chapter in our lives is over, so let’s end it. Please respect me with his last name and name of company.”

Sharon realized that she had no choice. She had to respect and trust her husband. She didn’t understand his insistence on this information, but she knew he would not relent until she provided it.

“His name is Steve Carter. He is a divorced father of two. He works for JJ Distribution. Are you happy?”

“No, but I will work on it.”

As they left the park, Jamie took Sharon’s hand in his. They got into bed that night and Sharon initiated sex. Jamie kissed her back, but then stopped.

“Sharon, I know you need to recharge. I would be happy to provide that charge, but not tonight. I love you. We will work on this.”

He then gave her a big kiss, turned over and said goodnight. He had never turned her down for sex before, and she was shocked. She was hoping that she could win back her husband soon.

The next morning they were civil, maybe more than that, maybe a little bit loving as they each went to work.

Jamie made a copy of the tape and sent it over to D & D (Phil and Roxy).

Phil called him later in the day. He asked what Jamie wanted.

“I’d like for you to find out as much information as you can about their tryst.”

“Okay, it’s your dime. We may come up with nothing. I will send you weekly reports. We expect to be paid for each week that we work.”

“No problem; don’t forget to credit me. How long to you anticipate this is going to take?”

“We won’t forget. This could take anywhere between four to eight weeks. It’s going to cost you a bundle. The 250 that you paid us, will just be small change when this is over.”

“Can you please explain your methods? How do you get information?”

Phil explained the process to Jamie.

*****

Over the next six weeks, Jamie and Sharon did become intimate again. Jamie was trying to move beyond what happened. They agreed that they didn’t need counselling. Jamie once thought about fantasizing that he was Steve, but thought better of it. He just needed to move on.

Steve did try to call Sharon once, and when she answered, she politely told him, that it was best not to communicate, and she hung up immediately.

Jamie did receive a weekly email from Phil, with his report. Finally, after six weeks, Phil called.

“Hi, how are you?”

“I’m good, I think Sharon and I are good. I have read your reports and it looks like they don’t see each other or communicate. How’s it going with Roxy and Steve?”

“I have some good news for you, and then some other news which I am not sure you will call good or bad.”

“What do you mean?”

“Why don’t you come by around 4:00 PM and we’ll go over everything?”

“You can’t leave me in suspense, please share with me now.”

“I don’t wish to do this over the phone. The good news is that after today, I don’t think you’ll need our services anymore.”

At 3:55, Jamie was in the reception area of D&D.

He was ushered in two minutes later. Phil and Roxy had some grave looks on.

“Who died?” Jamie asked.

“Maybe your marriage,” Roxy answered. “Sharon was not completely truthful, or at least Steve had a different story.”

“What did he say?”

“Jamie, they didn’t sleep together, they didn’t have oral, but he definitely pleasured her. At least that is what he claims and I actually believed him.”

Jamie had to wipe a few tears out of his eyes. “Please tell me what you know.”

Phil provided Jamie with a report, transcripts of the recorded conversations and the recordings.

Phil started off with most of what Jamie already knew. They managed to follow the two of them for three weeks, got bugs on each of their cars, mobile phones and work extensions. They did report that Steve called Sharon once, but she politely terminated the conversation and asked him not to contact her again. Jamie was a bit upset with his wife that she never reported that to him, but maybe he understood her predicament. They also followed their patterns, and Phil noticed that Steve went to the same bar every Friday after work. It was a pretty high-class bar. Phil noted that at times Steve tried to pick up women and sometimes women tried to pick up Steve. Nothing happened, so on the fourth Friday, they went to Plan B and Roxy went to the bar.

A few guys tried to pick her up. One guy got too aggressive and Roxy raised her voice to get him to leave her alone. As luck would have it, Steve came to her rescue. He tried chatting with her, but she turned him down. About 30 minutes later, Roxy went back to Steve just to apologize. This was all found in transcript marked “A.” Every meeting between Roxy and Steve was in a separate transcript.

“I’m sorry.” Roxy started as Jamie read from the transcript. “I just discovered that my husband has had a three-month affair and so I came here to cool off. I presented him with evidence and while he didn’t deny it, he tried to apologize and promise he’ll end it. I just told him that I needed to get out and cool off. I didn’t need all those leaches trying to pick me up.”

“Well, I’m a good listener, if you need to get something off your chest.” Steve said to Roxy.

Roxy gave her sob story: 15 years, two kids, good wife and stay at home mother. Husband is an attorney. She didn’t want a divorce. Was afraid to lose her family, but was mortified that he could cheat on her.

Steve asked her why he did it. She didn’t know. “You know, I was also that louse,” he said. “I cheated on my wife only once, and she threw me out. It was a slip. I was on a business trip with someone from my office and got carried away. The stupid girl bragged about it to her friend who knew my wife, and the rest is history. No affair, just once. I begged my wife to give me a second chance. She refused. I think it was her ego or pride that got hurt too badly. My ex has her own business and does quite well. She earns nearly as much as I do. I don’t have alimony, only child support, which, of course, I happily pay. I love my kids, but I know that I broke up their happy family.”

“So you think I should give my louse another chance?”

“I can’t tell you what to do. It was a three-month affair. I think you need to ask him why.”

“Hmm… by the way, I’m Jane. What’s your name?”

“I’m Steve”.

“Steve, you seem like a nice guy and maybe someone I can trust; can I meet you here around 6:00 PM on Tuesday?”

“Sure, Jane. I look forward to it. Have a nice weekend.”

“You too”

End of Transcript A

*****

“Hi, Steve, sorry I’m late. I had to come up with an excuse to get out for the night.”

“How’s it going?”

“The weekend was tough. I made him move out of our master bedroom. He’s still living at home. He broke it off. It was a paralegal in his office. He fessed up to the senior partner. Mike (my husband) just made partner last year. Here’s the main problem. I want the little tramp fired. Mike can’t fire her because she will sue for wrongful termination and sexual harassment. The firm has fined Mike $100,000 of which he only paid 20% and owes the remaining over the next four years. He makes enough that we can afford it. They want the little tramp to sign a waiver that she won’t sue. She’s seeing her own attorney. Mike has to see her and work with her and I have to live with it. I can’t make him leave. It took him a long time to make partner.”

“Wow! That is a mess. Why’d he do it?”

“He didn’t have any good excuse, working late one night with her. Tough case. She did some good things. He gave her a hug and was erect. She felt it and then just started to go down on him. After she finished him, she demanded that he repay the favor. They only did it at work, late at night, usually in his office. It was only sex, although he did buy her a necklace.”